Flyer scolds Norristown Council for not starting police chief search

NORRISTOWN — With a group of residents circulating a flyer asking for a formal search to replace retiring Norristown Police Chief Russell Bono, council has not made a search decision yet.

Bono and Capt. Willie Richet, the deputy police chief, both have plans to retire at the end of February 2013 as part of the deferred retirement option plan, or DROP, program.

Bono has been police chief for 14 years. He started as a patrolman on June 2, 1971, and was named police chief on Dec. 8, 1998. Richet has been a police officer in Norristown for 39 years and nine months. He was named captain and deputy police chief on May 16, 2000.

“We have not hired a search firm to fill the job. A decision has not been made to hire a search firm,” said Municipal Administrator David Forrest Tuesday afternoon. “There are ongoing discussions about potentially hiring a search firm among council members. This is an ongoing discussion among council members.”

Advertisement

Forrest was reluctant to talk about details of the situation because, he said, discussions are continuing and council will make the ultimate decisions about replacing Bono.

The flyer, printed on orange paper said, “Norristown needs a legitimate formal search for a qualified police chief who is in charge of 60 plus cops, a $7.5 million departmental budget and makes over $134,000/year.”

Forrest and human resources generalist Darlene Norwood wrote a description of the police chief’s job two years ago that said the position required “a Bachelor’s degree; 10 years of increasingly responsible experience in a police department; graduation from the FBI National Academy; Municipal Police Officers’ Education and Training Commission certification; required National Incident Management System certifications and any equivalent combination of education and experience.”

“We redid most all of the management job descriptions two years ago. They needed to be updated,” Forrest said. “The job description has not been sent out to any Pennsylvania agency that helps municipalities hire police chiefs.”

The flyer incorrectly alleges Norristown officials would accept a candidate with a high school education while the municipality’s job description requires a bachelor’s degree.

“Most townships and municipalities require a minimum of 10 years experience, a master’s degree, graduation from the FBI Academy and a state required training course to even be considered as a candidate. Chiefs in many townships around us have this and more. Why should Norristown accept something less?” the flyer said.

Councilwoman Linda Christian, a member of the Norristown Council Public Safety Committee, said, “The flyer needlessly causes chaos in the community. I have not seen it.”

“I have always believed Norristown residents should fill leadership roles because they are fully invested in the community,” Christian said. “When a permanent police chief is selected, I am in favor of a search and community involvement. I prefer that Norristown residents have leadership positions.”

Christian said, “I believe we can fill an interim police chief’s position from the officers that we have.”

One of the eight residents distributing the flyers, former Councilwomen Olivia Brady, who served from 2000 to 2005,said the group was “asking people to contact council to have them start the search. We feel Norristown needs to have the process completed to make sure we have a qualified candidate to be police chief.”

“Council has known for a while that the police chief and Capt. Richet were retiring. The process calls for a search to put these people into place,” Brady said. “We want to make sure we get a qualified person in there. This is about the process.”

One scenario, it has been speculated, is that Richet would retire, collect his pension and be rehired by council as interim police chief.

Brady emphasized that “this is not about Capt. Richet. It is about doing the search process the way it should be done. We want people to be informed.”

Councilman Marlon Millner said, “Council is still in decision-making mode. There are a variety of options and competing interests that have to be considered. I’m hopeful that before the end of the year council will say ‘here is the path forward.’”

Both Millner and Christian declined comment when asked whether they supported a public search for a police chief.

“I’m in favor of a process that is not about just one person. One of the basic issues is what kind of policing we want in the community,” Millner said. “I want a public safety strategy that uses the best strategies of policing and that focuses on violent crime among youth and adults. We can’t arrest ourselves out of this situation.”

Council members William Caldwell, Cathy Lawrence, Dwayne Royster, Mimi DeSouza and Council President Gary Simpson did not respond to telephone calls seeking comment.

Forrest outlined a practical plan if council fails to move forward to replace Bono.

“If both leave and don’t come back and we don’t have a chief selected in that time before March 31, council would have to consider appointing an interim police chief,” Forrest said.